


The Adventures of Derek Hale: Reclusive Cat Owner

by KuriKuri



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Asexual Derek Hale, Fluff, M/M, Valentine's Day, Veterinarian Scott
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-16
Updated: 2016-02-16
Packaged: 2018-05-21 02:09:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6034120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KuriKuri/pseuds/KuriKuri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“It’s not – ” Derek grumbles, frustrated. “My cat's name is Dwight D. Eisenmeower.”</p>
<p>Dr. McCall blinks at him for a second. Then, he grins. There are <em>dimples</em> – Derek’s fairly sure he’s been momentarily blinded.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Adventures of Derek Hale: Reclusive Cat Owner

**Author's Note:**

  * For [machtaholic (cinderella81)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cinderella81/gifts).



> Originally posted [here](http://twtransacearoexchange.tumblr.com/post/139252480461/gift-for-machtaholic-from-authorkurikuri-rated) on tumblr, for the Trans/Ace/Aro V-Day Exchange.
> 
> Warnings: mention of a sick cat??

Derek Hale doesn’t own a cat. Not technically, at least – Laura’s name is on the paperwork, she brought it home from the shelter, she _named_ the damn thing. But somehow Derek has found himself taking care of a gigantic Maine Coon named Dwight D. Eisenmeower as if he were Derek’s own.

He should really see if he can get the poor cat’s name changed.

“Derek Hale?” someone calls out, making Derek stand up from one of the uncomfortable chairs in the veterinarian office’s waiting room.

“Yes?” he replies, and the veterinarian fixes him with what’s probably the most charming smile Derek’s ever seen. Derek feels momentarily knocked off balance. He’s not accustomed to thinking of people as “charming.”

“This way, please,” the veterinarian says, leading Derek back into one of the exam rooms. “You’re just here for a check-up, yes?”

Derek nods, Eisenmeower squirming in his arms as he sees the cold metal of the exam table.

“Alright, how about you set your cat down on the table here,” the veterinarian continues, placing a towel down over the exam table for Derek to place Eisenmeower on. Even with the towel, Eisenmeower is still bristling uncomfortably, his fur puffed up so much that he looks at least twice his normal size. Derek runs a hand over him in an unconscious motion, scratching behind his ears, and Eisenmeower calms somewhat.

Once Eisenmeower seems settled enough, Derek looks up again, and is surprised to find the veterinarian looking back at him, a soft, fond expression on his face. Derek feels this tips of his ears heat.

“I’m Dr. McCall,” the veterinarian introduces himself, extending a hand to Derek. Derek takes it immediately, but has to suppress a grimace as he realizes his palm is probably still covered in cat hair.

“Derek Hale,” he replies automatically, before remembering that Dr. McCall probably already knows that.

“Nice to meet you,” Dr. McCall replies, and somehow sounds like he genuinely means it. “And your cat’s name?”

Derek freezes for a moment.

“I didn’t – my sister named him,” Derek replies, and Dr. McCall frowns slightly.

“And you don’t know his name?” Dr. McCall asks, and although his tone isn’t judgmental it’s almost – _disappointed_ , maybe. Part of Derek wants him to suddenly become invisible, while the rest of him wants to make Dr. McCall smile softly again.

He’s known the man for less than _five minutes_. He really shouldn’t be so invested his smile.

“It’s not – ” Derek grumbles, frustrated. “His name is Dwight D. Eisenmeower.”

Dr. McCall blinks at him for a second. Then, he grins. There are _dimples_ – Derek’s fairly sure he’s been momentarily blinded.

“It was my sister’s idea,” Derek continues quickly.

“Hey, no, it’s cute,” Dr. McCall says, laughing slightly. “He’ll fit right in. Mrs. Zheng’s pet tortoise is named Voldetort.”

“She and Laura should never meet,” Derek snorts, his hand moving back to scratch under Eisenmeower’s chin.

“I’ll try to keep my mouth shut about it,” Dr. McCall laughs. “Alright, well, unfortunately it’s on to the serious stuff now. Do you have a copy of Dwight’s – ”

“Eisenmeower,” Derek interrupts automatically, before his brain registers what he’s saying.

“ – _Eisenmeower’s_ ,” Dr. McCall corrects himself, barely pausing, “vaccination record with you?”

Derek fumbles with his bag for a moment before coming up with the slip of paper. He just holds it out for Dr. McCall, not trusting himself to say anything else without embarrassing himself again.

“Hmm, well it looks like Eisenmeower is all set with his vaccinations for now,” Dr. McCall says, checking over the paper. “Is he an outdoor cat or an indoor cat?”

“Indoor,” Derek replies. Dr. McCall hums in response, frowning as he examines Eisenmeower’s left ear, which looks fine from a distance, but is a little tattered on closer inspection. “He was feral before he was brought into the shelter, but my sister and I have kept him inside since we adopted him.”

“No problems yet?” Dr. McCall asks, taking a light out of his pocket and carefully inspecting the insides of Eisenmeower’s ears.

“None,” Derek answers, shaking his head. “He was trained to use a litterbox at some point.”

“That’s good,” Dr. McCall says, continuing to examine Eisenmeower, who’s looking a little wary again, but doesn’t try to squirm away from him. “And you have plenty of toys? I’ve found that ones with feathers are best for occupying formerly feral cats. We have some ten percent off coupons for Isaac’s Pet Emporium.”

“I think he has enough for now,” Derek replies, trying to keep his tone casual and to not think about the veritable shopping spree he’d gone on after Laura had brought Eisenmeower home. Laura’s adoption of Eisenmeower had been somewhat impulsive, and Derek had found himself going through the pet store and buying… well, what felt like one of practically everything labeled “for cats.” Eisenmeower’s been living like a veritable prince.

Dr. McCall asks him a few more questions as he continues the exam, and Derek tries to answer them to the best of his ability without getting distracted by Dr. McCall’s dimples again, or the way he says “Eisenmeower” like it’s a perfectly reasonable cat name.

“Alright, well, Eisenmeower appears to have a clean bill of health,” Dr. McCall says, petting Eisenmeower under the chin once more before straightening up to address Derek. “I normally recommend that cat owners bring in their cats twice a year, but if anything happens to Eisenmeower in the meantime, don’t hesitate to call.”

“Thanks,” Derek manages, scooping Eisenmeower back up into his arms before corralling him back into the cat carrier. Eisenmeower looks disgruntled, but he doesn’t protest as much as he did on the ride over to the vet’s office.

“Have a nice day,” Dr. McCall says, smiling sweetly.

Derek thinks he manages to grunt out a response before fleeing the scene.

\---

Derek certainly doesn’t expect to see Dr. McCall anytime soon (although he may have already marked Eisenmeower’s next appointment on his calendar, circled in red marker). However, while out jogging that weekend, he hears someone say, “Mr. Hale!”

He frowns, taking out his earbuds, and turns to find Dr. McCall running up next to him, beaming. There’s a bit of sweat clinging to his temples, and he’s clad in running clothes, too, his tennis-shoes clearly well-worn.

“Dr. McCall,” Derek greets him, nodding.

“Please, call me Scott,” Scott replies, matching Derek’s pace. “I’m only Dr. McCall at the office.”

“Alright,” Derek says, hesitating slightly, “Scott.”

“How’s Eisenmeower doing?” Scott asks. “Gotten into any trouble in the past four days?

“He’s a well behaved cat,” Derek replies, trying not to think of how yesterday he’d come home to find Eisenmeower using the couch as a scratching post.

“I’m sure he is,” Scott replies, lips twitching up into an amused smile. “I didn’t mean to imply that he wasn’t. Cats can just be a hassle sometimes.”

“Please don’t tell me you’re a dog person,” Derek says, the words spilling out of his mouth before he can think them through. Scott blinks at him for a second, looking surprised, before letting out a burst of laughter.

“Don’t be like that – I love cats,” Scott replies when he finally stops laughing. “Honestly, I’ve never understood this whole cat person, dog person dichotomy. Why not like both?”

“My family had a dog when I was a kid,” Derek offers, his tone a little wistful. “He, uh, died, though, so I think that’s why Laura got a cat instead.”

“I’m sorry to hear about that,” Scott says, a sympathetic expression on his face. “What was his name?”

“Tippy,” Derek answers. “He didn’t have a very good sense of balance.”

“Not quite as good a name as Eisenmeower, but not bad,” Scott laughs. “I have a retriever named Muffin.”

“Muffin?” Derek asks, quirking an eyebrow at Scott.

“She was brought into the shelter after breaking into Erica Reyes’ bakery and eating an entire pan of banana nut muffins,” Scott answers with a grin. “The name kind of stuck after that, although my friend Stiles keeps calling her Banana Nut. He’s going to give her identity issues.”

“Still better than Eisenmeower,” Derek snorts.

“I don’t know, it’s kind of a funny name,” Scott replies. “Quirky. It’s one of the best on the list we have pinned up in the vet’s office, I think.”

“I’ll be sure to pass that on to Laura,” Derek says, his tone dry. Scott laughs again, and Derek gets a fuzzy feeling in his chest.

“Alright, well, I’m afraid I’m turning off here,” Scott says, gesturing to the street to their left. “I’ll see you ‘round, though!”

“See you,” Derek calls after him, and Scott gives him a little wave before disappearing down the side-street.

Derek finds himself whistling in the shower after his run, and he’s riding a high for the rest of the day. Not that anything can come from it, of course. As sweet as Scott is, Derek’s done this song and dance enough times to know that people are generally only interested in his looks, and as soon as they find out that sex is off the table, well.

He sighs, and tries not to think about how he’s already halfway to becoming a lonely old person with a house full of cats.

\---

Valentine’s Day comes sooner than Derek expects it to. Derek doesn’t have any particular love for the holiday, but he wouldn’t really say he hates it, either. He and Laura have never gotten out of the habit of giving each other chocolate, at any rate; their parents had always insisted that platonic and familial love were just as important on the holiday as romantic love.

This year, however, Derek’s not quite as happy about the chocolate.

Mainly because he comes back to his apartment after work to find Eisenmeower coughing up little bits of pink and red foil, mixed with some sort of brownish muck. It takes him a moment to realize that the bowl of chocolates that had been sitting on his coffee table was knocked over, and a good half of the chocolates are gone.

“Shit,” Derek mutters, pulling his phone out of his pocket and googling: _can cats eat chocolate?_

He’s pretty sure his heart nearly stops when the first link proclaims that chocolate can be lethal to cats. Moving almost on autopilot, Derek scoops Eisenmeower up into his arms and rushes back out the door and to his car.

He breaks the speed limit the entire way to the vet’s office, and practically runs through the doors and into the waiting room, Eisenmeower still clutched securely in his arms. Thankfully, the waiting room is otherwise empty as Derek rushes to the front desk.

“My cat ate chocolate,” he blurts out, Eisenmeower still coughing up little bits of chocolate onto his shirt.

“Let me get Dr. McCall,” the man at the desk says, disappearing into the back of the building.

Derek waits anxiously, fingers curled in Eisenmeower’s fur. Part of him thinks it’s stupid that he’s so worried – he’s barely had Eisenmeower for three weeks, and Eisenmeower isn’t even technically _his_. A palpable wave of relief washes over him as Scott pushes open the door and enters the room, accepting Eisenmeower from Derek.

“Do you know how much chocolate he ate?” Scott asks, his tone smooth and professional.

“About half a bowl. The pieces were about this big,” Derek answers, making a rough estimate of the size of the pieces with his fingers. “He ate the foil wrappers, too.”

“Has he had any seizures, or has he just been vomiting?” Scott asks, making his way to the exam room.

“Seizures?” Derek asks, trying to keep the alarm out of his tone. “No, just the vomiting.”

“That’s good,” Scott says, offering Derek a small, half-hearted smile. “I’m going to have you wait here while I run some tests, alright?”

Derek nods numbly. Scott gives him one more reassuring smile before disappearing deeper into the clinic. Derek stands in the middle of the room for a moment, staring after him, but then collapses into the small plastic chair in the corner of the room, dropping his head into his hands.

He’s not entirely sure how long he waits. Too long, it feels like. Eventually, he hears the soft tap of feet on the linoleum floor, indicating someone heading his way. Scott pushes his way through the door, and Derek shoots up from the chair.

“Eisenmeower’s going to be okay,” Scott says, before Derek can even get his question out. “It’s good you got him to us so soon.”

“Thank god,” Derek replies, relief washing over him.

“We’re giving him some fluids right now and are monitoring his heartrate, just in case,” Scott continues. “I’d prefer to keep him overnight, if that’s alright with you.”

“Of course,” Derek replies, and Scott gives him a tired smile.

“When we release him to you, though, he’s going to have to go on a diet for a little while,” Scott says. “Bland foods, so his stomach doesn’t get irritated.”

“Thank you,” Derek replies softly, earning him a slightly surprised look from Scott.

“You don’t need to thank me,” Scott reassures him. “Although, uh.” Scott hesitates for a second, looking at Derek carefully. “It’s been a long day, and if you wanted to grab a drink with me…”

“Now?” Derek asks, frowning.

“Ah, sorry, I should have known you would have other plans,” Scott answers, looking a little sheepish. “Considering it’s Valentine’s Day, and all.”

“I don’t have plans,” Derek blurts out awkwardly. “I just thought – your shift – ”

“Oh, no, my shift ended about half an hour ago,” Scott replies, beaming.

“You stayed – ” Derek starts, his insides going fuzzy at the thought of Scott staying to help Eisenmeower.

“I mean, I’m still no call, so I would have had to come in anyway,” Scott laughs. “And it’s not like I was just going to abandon a sick animal.”

“Of course,” Derek says, his tone gruff.

“So,” Scott replies. “Drinks?”

“I’d like that,” Derek answers, a soft smile on his lips.

\---

Scott likes tequila, apparently, but Derek will forgive him that fallacy as long as he keeps smiling like he is, cheeks a little pink and eyes bright. They’re at a small bar not too far from the clinic, one of those slightly frou-frou types with locally brewed beer and vintage glassware. Derek’s honestly surprised that Scott was able to find tequila – although, granted, it is in martini form.

“You know, I still don’t know what you do,” Scott says, propping his chin up on his hand.

“I’m a firefighter, actually,” Derek answers. It’s a little difficult for him to properly see Scott, with the bar’s low lighting.

“Well, next time one of my patients gets stuck in a tree, I’ll call you,” Scott replies, grinning.

“You refer to the animals as patients?” Derek asks, curious.

“I mean, they may not be the ones paying, but they are the ones getting treated,” Scott answers with a shrug. “They deserve to be treated like actual patients.”

Derek, for a moment, wonders how Dr. Scott McCall is actually real.

“Actually, I originally started working at the clinic in high school, because I thought it would be a stepping stone to working with humans and becoming a nurse or physician, but I got to attached to the animals,” Scott laughs.

“Well, I’m glad you did,” Derek replies, with a small smile.

“What about you?” Scott asks. “How’d you decide to become a firefighter?”

Derek tenses for a moment, his hand tightening around the glass of beer in his hand.

“I, ah,” Derek starts, resisting the urge to fidget uncomfortably. “My parents died in a fire.”

“Oh, fuck, I’m sorry,” Scott replies, his expression pained. “I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”

“You didn’t know,” Derek says, shrugging.

“That’s so brave of you, though,” Scott continues. “If something like that happened to my mom… I don’t think I’d be brave enough.”

“I think you would be,” Derek replies. “You’re a very kind person.”

Scott gives him a small, tentative smile, and after a moment of hesitation, Derek reaches over to place his hand over Scott’s, where it’s lying atop the bar. Scott looks surprised for a second, but then his smile returns, and he twists his hand around to thread their fingers together.

“Sorry,” Scott finally says, breaking the silence. “I thought going out for drink would help cheer you up after everything with Eisenmeower, but – ”

“No, it’s good,” Derek interrupts. “I enjoy – ” _you_ “ – the company. I would have just been sitting alone in my apartment otherwise.”

“Really?” Scott asks, sounding surprised.

“My sisters think I need to get out more,” Derek says, grimacing slightly. “Truthfully, I think Laura adopted Eisenmeower because she thinks I’m a lonely hermit.”

“Well, if you would like to get out more, I’d be up for getting drinks together again,” Scott replies, dimples appearing again.

“That sounds good,” Derek agrees, and is surprised to find that he actually means it. He’s never really been one for much human contact, or casual conversation, but Scott is… he wouldn’t mind spending more time with Scott.

However, just as Derek begins to think that this might actually work out, Scott leans over and presses a gentle kiss to his lips.

Derek freezes.

Thankfully, Scott doesn’t push. Instead, he pulls away, an apologetic and slightly panicked expression on his face. He pulls his hand away from Derek’s, where their fingers were still twined.

“Sorry, I thought – I guess I misread the situation,” Scott says, his expression closing off. “I’ll just – ”

“I don’t kiss,” Derek blurts out, a confused look taking over Scott’s face.

“Okay,” Scott says carefully.

“I’m asexual,” Derek clarifies. “I like you, a lot, but I don’t – sex is off the table.”

“Okay,” Scott says again.

“I’ll just – ” Derek sighs, getting up from his chair.

“Wait,” Scott interrupts, making Derek pause. “The offer of going out again is still on the table, if you want. I won’t try to kiss you again.”

“Is this a friend thing?” Derek asks, frowning.

“I was hoping it could still be a date thing,” Scott answers, the corners of his lips twitching up in amusement. “But if you want it to just be a friend thing, I understand.”

“And you’re okay with the…?” Derek replies, his brow furrowing even further.

“Yeah,” Scott answers. “I mean, I can at least give it a try. You’re attractive, but I also like _you_.”

“Oh,” Derek says, caught off guard.

“Hey, don’t sound so surprised,” Scott replies, a soft smile on his lips. “I don’t really ask out people who I’m not emotionally invested in.”

“Are you free tomorrow?” Derek asks, surprising himself a little.

“I finish up at seven,” Scott answers, also sounding a little surprised, but pleased.

“How does dinner sound?” Derek continues, and the smile Scott shoots him is absolutely radiant.

“Dinner sounds great,” he replies.

Derek feels a smile spread over his lips, and he’s pretty sure he looks like a complete dork, but he just can’t help it. Looks like he just might not die alone in a house full of cats.

\---

When Derek goes to pick up Eisenmeower the next day, Eisenmeower makes a horrible yowling noise and digs his claws into Scott’s white coat, clearly unwilling to leave Scott. Derek resists the urge to say, “Me too.”

**Author's Note:**

> [my tumblr](http://authorkurikuri.tumblr.com/)


End file.
